On Campus: Biagi on the rise at Bryant

Katy Biagi remembers it well. It was sometime after the spring season last year, and her coach, Chris Flint, asked to speak with her. "It was a pretty serious conversation at the end of the year, just to close it out," said the Natick native. The message was clear — Biagi, heading into her junior year, had to be one of them.

Katy Biagi remembers it well. It was sometime after the spring season last year, and her coach, Chris Flint, asked to speak with her.

"It was a pretty serious conversation at the end of the year, just to close it out," said Biagi.

She knew the situation, as did everyone on the Bryant women’s soccer team. The Bulldogs had missed out on the Northeast Conference tournament on the last day of the season by a single game. They were losing 12 seniors, and they needed players to step up.

The message was clear — Biagi, heading into her junior year, had to be one of them.

"It gave me some perspective and it just let me know what I should be doing in terms of training and how I should come into the year," said Biagi. "He told me what they expected of me and I just took it as, this is where I’m expected to be, this is where I need to be, and it definitely gave me some motivation over the summer."

Biagi, a Natick native, had spent her first two seasons as a role player for the Bulldogs. She didn’t make a start as a freshman, but appeared in every game as a reserve. Last season, she battled through a knee injury to make 14 appearances, including three starts while scoring her first collegiate goal and assisting on three others.

As the progression went, so did her coach’s confidence that she was ready to take the step from role player to key player.

"A lot of it is just experience and getting used to the physicality of the collegiate game and getting stronger in the weight room," said Flint. "And she brought something athletically that nobody else in her positional group had, and we let her know coming out of the spring of our expectations and that she was going to be a key contributor this fall and I think she put in the time over the summer to make sure that was the case."

Through the first 11 games this season, things have gone according to plan. Mostly.

The Bulldogs are 5-7-1 after defeating Sacred Heart 1-0 in their first conference game of the season. But before Sunday, they had dropped three straight, and have had trouble finding a consistent 90-minute effort.

Biagi, however, has largely lived up to the expectations set for her this past spring.

She was held out of Wednesday’s game against Brown due to an ankle injury in preparation for conference play. But otherwise, Biagi has appeared in 11 games and made 10 starts, logging major minutes in the midfield.

Patience has paid off. After her career at Natick as a four-year starter for coach Lisa Wilkins, coming off the bench is something she wasn’t exactly used to. But in her third season, it seems Biagi has finally caught up to the competition.

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"In terms of the level of competitiveness, it was definitely a wakeup call," said Biagi. "Once you’re all together in this community, playing against girls who are just as good as you thought you were in high school, you definitely realize you have to elevate your play."

Her emergence has come right on time.

"Kids aren’t usually ready to play big minutes as a freshman just because of the demand physically," said Flint." She’s on the page with what we typically look for.

"I think she’s a key contributor for us and she’s a valuable part of our midfield."

Which isn’t to say her development is complete.

Biagi’s game as a whole is still a work in progress, most notably on offense.

According to Flint, Biagi's greatest strength is her ability in the air, where her athleticism allows her to beat even taller players to the ball. She’s the player the Bulldogs target on corner kicks. She’s become a more complete player, but Flint sees more room for growth.

For instance, the numbers don’t exactly jump off the page. So far this season, Biagi has one goal and one assist on 14 shots, three of which have been on target.

The goal is to turn her into a player who doesn’t simply advance the ball, but creates opportunities to put it in net.

"It’s hard to score, and the game of soccer can be very frustrating," said Flint. "You can hit two or three posts and walk away and have nothing to show for it. But it’s one of those things where we’re just asking her to create two or three good opportunities for herself or someone else, and if she can walk away form games saying that, that’s really what we’re trying to get her to do."

For Biagi, It seems to be a matter of changing her approach. In this case, a little selfishness may go a long way.

"I see myself more as a playmaker setting up plays going forward to the strikers on the outside, but I think I should be taking more shots too," said Biagi. "Not just looking for those through balls, but being more of a long range shooter."

Bryant could certainly use more scoring. The Bulldogs have been held scoreless six times this season, and of their seven losses, five have been decided by a single goal.

And now, with conference play upon them, the Bulldogs have even less margin for error.

But Sunday’s victory seems like a step in the right direction. Unfinished business remains for Bryant.

And Biagi, in addition to her increased role on the field, has become a leader on the team.

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"We need to close out the game and play 90 minutes and not say, ‘Oh we played one good half,’" said Biagi. "We need to be encouraging to each other, we need to think we can do this. We were one point out of making NEC tournament last year, and we were all devastated.

"I think we all just need to remember that feeling and remember that we’ve done all the hard work and we’ve done all the summer training and we just need to put it out on the field."

Notes

Natick’s David Hamel, a member of the Norwich University class of ’98, will be inducted into the Norwich Athletic Hall of Fame for his outstanding wrestling career. On top of being a three-time placer at the New England Championships, Hamel had a historic senior season where he led all of Division III in wins. …

Ithaca College’s Mike Vulcano, of Northborough, was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week announced for the week ending Sept. 28. …

Junior Chelsey Peso, of Uxbridge, was selected as MASCAC Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week for helping lead Worcester State to a runner-up finish at the Worcester City Meet.

Craig Gilvarg can be reached at 508-626-4405 or cgilvarg@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @CraigGilvarg.